“Wolves … change rivers.” I had been trying not to doze off as the bright October sun flooded into my Earth Systems classroom, my friday-afternoon-brain already enjoying its weekend respite. How. How can wolves change rivers? I sat up. Looked at the projector – rushing Yellowstone water and a munching moose – as George Monbiot carefully explained wolves’ ability to change ecosystems. To change abiotic features, not just biotic interactions.
That class carried me to Middlebury–ecological research and wild spaces–where my eyes absorb the vast High Peaks wilderness. Could wolves live there? Wolves are ecosystem engineers with vast impacts on ecological communities; wolf-reintroduction could contribute to rewilding the Adirondack State Park.
The foundations of Adirondack other discourses shape conversations about wolf-reintroduction in the Adirondack State Park. Adirondack disputes over ecological facts, property rights, and beliefs about nature’s role within a mostly-domesticated planet provoke intense debates regarding all conservation efforts in the area, including wolf restoration (Enck & Brown). These discussions often involve questions over the State’s right to institute high-impact (ecological and economic) policies without resident input. The delocalized model of management has caused conflict since the Park’s formation in 1892. Wolves manipulate large swaths of territory – in the park, they would do so irrespective of official land designations. Official land designations, specifically the minute differences between different classifications of wild lands (e.g. primitive area vs wilderness), although they might effect the expectations of human visitors. Wolves would impact human activities as they passed between parcels of land. The DEC (Department of Environmental Conservation) claims that a decision to reintroduce wolves would require an “‘awful lot of analysis and evaluation and public engagement,’” (Lynch) making it impractical to consider given staff shortages and a focus on protecting already-present species..
Community views of wolf reintroduction may be more moderate than the DEC forecasted. A 2002 study found that 41.3% of the Blue-line population would be opposed to a wolf reintroduction program (Enck & Brown). These results reflected the general trend that “nearness of residents to a proposed restoration site” affects their willingness to consider wolf reinstatement. The study found 60.2% of state respondents in favor of restoration (Enck & Brown). Respondents outside of the Blue Line focused on conservation benefits rather than human-community impacts. These data are surprisingly favorable to wolves, given that only 50% of study respondents knew that wolves do not kill livestock and pets when they have access to abundant wildlife prey (Enck & Brown). There are an estimated 60,000-80,000 white-tailed deer in the Adirondack Park (Adirondacks Forever Wild) – an abundant food source for wolves – meaning wolves wouldn’t kill domesticated animals. Instead, they would stay in wild areas, hunting deer and shaping ecosystems. As they were always meant to. An education campaign highlighting wolves’ non-interference in society could improve willingness to consider reintegration.
While wildlife experts hope wolves may return to the Park (Lynch), data suggest that they could not make a return without human facilitation. The Park meets wolf habitat requirements and limitations as determined by peer-reviewed study of wolves and their niche, and could potentially become a “core habitat” of Eastern Timber Wolves (Harrison & Chapin). The landscape, with their presence, would return to a form closer to the original, natural version. Lake Champlain, the Saint Lawrence River, and expanses of agricultural and urban land separate the Park from existing wolf populations. Wolves often die when they cross highways and move through non-wilderness; there are no suitable wildlife corridors between wolf populations in Canada or the (fledgling) Maine population and the Park (Harrison & Chapin; International Wolf Center). Human assisted reintroduction would likely be based on the Yellowstone model of reintroduction which involved radio collars for tracking and an acclimation period.
Fostering the return of wolves would return the park to a more organic state (wolves roamed the park until ~1900). Opinions on the positivity of that change depend on the relationship between individuals and the biological community. Wolf reintroduction would boost local economies– tourists visit other parks specifically for the opportunity to see and hear wolves (Lynch). For others, perceived moral and environmental obligations justify the minimal risks of reintegration.
Any wolf return would be complex and require the agreement of and participation by numerous stakeholders with varying perspectives. Wolves may change rivers, but human communities and opinions may have to change first.
References
Enck, J. W., & Brown, T. L. (2002). New Yorkers’ Attitudes toward Restoring Wolves to the Adirondack Park. Wildlife Society Bulletin (1973-2006), 30(1), 16–28. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3784631
Harrison, D. J., & Chapin, T. G. (1998). Extent and Connectivity of Habitat for Wolves in Eastern North America. Wildlife Society Bulletin (1973-2006), 26(4), 767–775. http://www.jstor.org/stable/3783550
Lynch, M. (2015, March 16). Will Wolves Return To The Adirondacks? Adirondack Almanac. Retrieved September 30, 2021, from https://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2015/03/will-wolves-return-to-the-adirondacks.html
Maine at a glance. (2021). International Wolf Center. Retrieved September 30, 2021, from https://wolf.org/wow/united-states/maine/
Mammals of the Adirondacks: White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus). (2021). Adirondacks Forever Wild. Retrieved September 30, 2021, from https://wildadirondacks.org/adirondack-mammals-white-tailed-deer-odocoileus-virginianus.html
Monbiot, G. (2014, February 13). How Wolves Change Rivers [Video]. Youtube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ysa5OBhXz-Q